Danube River Bike Tour Reviews
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- ★★★★★ Anita E
Good Value
Vienna to Budapest 5-nights (Active)
A friend was supposed to join me on this bike tour but she had to bail and I ended up riding Solo which was kind of lonely. That said that route was excellent and pretty easy to follow. The TO's team was very responsive to my questions and concerns and it went a long way in making me confident on my solo ride. My only complaint was the e-bike. It was much heavier than what I'm used to riding which meant I needed to use more assistance. This gave me battery anxiety. The saddle/seat was very rigid and even with padded bike shorts I was very sore at the end of each day. I say this as a long distance endurance cyclist so I am used to being on a saddle for hours and hours. I usually don't get saddle sore. I got sick at the midpoint on the last day and TO help me figure out what to do with the bike and how to get to my final hotel. I appreciate their efforts.
- How many tours have you completed?
- 3
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Hungary, Slovakia
BikeTours.com staff reply from Staff member
Anita,
Thank you for your thoughtful review!
We're really glad to hear the team was able to support you and help you feel confident throughout your ride, and that you enjoyed the route.
Sorry that the e-bike and saddle didn’t meet your expectations, especially given your experience as a cyclist. Your feedback is truly appreciated and will help improve moving forward.
Bozena
- ★★★★★ Kate Richardson
Pure magic!
Danube Family Tour 7 Nights
This was our first bike trip as a family. Our girls were 7 and 8 at the time so it proved slightly challenging for them at moments but mostly just because our days were long. The experience was like magic and we genuinely enjoyed every town we stopped in. We were grateful to find food for our very picky eaters along the way (one of our biggest concerns going into the trip). We enjoyed the trip during apricot season was absolutely incredible. Our kids will never enjoy fresh juices in the way that we did in Austria ever again! We added a couple of extra nights in Vienna which was well worth it. Take the trip!
- ★★★★★ Donna
Fantastic experience!
Danube Cycle Path Passau – Budapest
Our self-guided bike tour from Passau to Budapest was fantastic! Bike Tours transported our luggage (LOVED that) and provided excellent ebikes and mostly excellent hotels. The bike paths were mostly easy to follow but even with the Pedalo App and map books provided with the bikes, I would have gotten hopelessly lost if we didn't have internet and maps to use too. Especially after Vienna when some paths got so rough I thought they couldn't possibly be part of the EV6/R1... BUT THEY WERE!!! But, most of the paths were great. I absolutely, thoroughly recommend a Danube bike tour. The best part (and I think this is true to most people judging by how many cyclists and guided bike tours were going on there) was Wachau around Durnstein.
We went in Autumn and I think that was brilliant because it wasn't so busy and watching the trees turn golden as we progressed was a beautiful surprise.
Some cycling days were 60km which I believe was too long because we had no time to explore the towns at the end of the day. We just wanted to use the pool and sauna when available. I was SO glad when the hotel had those facilities. Best thing ever at the end of a long day of riding. Especially when it was wet and cold, which, unfortunately we had for the first few days. I definitely recommend paying extra to get more accommodation with saunas. All the hotel staff were used to cyclists and some had excellent storage. Others, didn't, but the staff were always helpful. Pack as lightly as you can, because even though the luggage is transferred for us, some hotels were walk-ups! Not good. Even worse there was a train journey in a town that only had stairs between platforms! With bikes! Awful. IF you can avoid the train, that's probably best. - ★★★★★ Theresa H
A treat for the eyes
Danube Cycle Path Passau – Budapest
I did the last tour of 2025, in October. I went with my sister (we are in our 50s) and my daughter (in her 30s) and we used ebikes. The autumn colours along the way were magnificent. We did get a lot of rain on the first day, and a small amount on the second but otherwise we got lucky with the weather. I wanted to do this type of tour in which you are not riding with other people because I prefer to take my time and not have to worry about holding other people up. There was another group of women we saw sometimes along the way, and got chatting to them sometimes, mostly at breakfast but once along the way. That was nice, and my daughter exchanged socials so she may have made friends.
The path from Passau to Vienna is fantastic, and I reckon I could do that again, maybe on my own and maybe even on a regular bike. After Vienna it's a bit rougher, particularly in Slovakia. We were worried about the bikes over one particularly bumpy patch, but we figured they wouldn't be sending the bikes there if they didn't think they were up to the task. And they were, so all was well.
The hotels we stayed at were very good, for the most part. We chose category A due to the higher number of spa hotels. They didn't all have a spa, and they didn't all have lifts either, so bear that in mind when packing. Yes, they transport your bags (chef's kiss on that) but you have to get them to your room. Some of the rooms in Austria were more suited to couples than to mother and daughter due to having bathrooms with glass doors, but we just had to make sure we were in a spot out of eyeline when the other was using the facilities.
I absolutely loved this trip and sometimes get a bit sad that it's over. - ★★★★★ Rochelle and Pierre van Niekerk
Danube 2025
Danube Cycle Path Passau – Budapest
Great adventure and well organized trip.
Hotel were perfect and we had no issues with finding the accommodation. One small issue was the that the published route length is stated as approximate, as it depends on the availability of Hotels for your trip. On one occasion we had to travel two towns further and after a long, bad weather day, this was very uncomfortable. Quickly learned to google the distances from Hotel to Hotel.
Wish we would have ordered e bikes from the beginning, as daily route distances are long for the first week (Section Passau to Wien) with the better pace you travel on a e bike it leaves more time to explore the town you visit overnight and on bad weather days (we unfortunately had plenty) the time spent on the bike in bad weather is less.
Could not fault the tour operators and we thank you for a wonderful experience. Will gladly recommend them.- What was the date of your tour?
- October 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- This was our 6th tour
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia
- ★★★★★ Janet
Brilliant experience
Danube Bike Path 8 Nights (Upscale Lodging)
We had an amazing trip...the logistics worked like clockwork and the bikes were great. Accommodation was all very suitable
- ★★★★★ Tom Courtney
Father and son special time together
Vienna to Budapest (Classic)
My 34 year old son and I (65) did this 6 day bike trip together. Created many special memories for us. Everything was so well organized. Hotels were very good. Many hotels had nice saunas or steam rooms or Thermal baths near by. It was nice to get to know some of the other bike riders even though this was not a group tour.
BikeTours.com staff reply from Staff member
Hi Tom,
Thank you so much for sharing! We’re really glad to hear you and your son had such a great time and made special memories together. Wonderful that you enjoyed the hotels and met other riders along the way too! Hope to welcome you again on another adventure!
Bozena
- ★★★★★ Regina Zilinski
An excellent choice as first Bike & Barge
Danube Experience Bike and Boat Passau-Vienna-Budapest-Belgrade-Iron Gates-Passau
Did not know what to expect but was delighted by the bike routes, the added tour options, the accommodations, the food and the great customer service.
- What was the date of your tour?
- Sept/Oct 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- My first
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Serbia, Slovakia
- ★★★★★ Kim S.
Sporty trip down the Danube!
Danube Bike Path 5-nights (Active)
Such a great way to experience this historic river and scenic countryside! An extra day before beginning my journey allowed time to relax and explore Passau. Hannas arrived at the hotel on time and provided information regarding the bike and route, very helpful. The route map provided was my main source for navigation and points of interest. I had some difficulty using the nav app but the R1 route is extremely well marked. A few extra days afterwards in Vienna topped off the trip. I’ll plan to return next year for another section along the Donau (Danube). The tour company made it very easy with prearranged hotels, luggage transport and route planning, will definitely use them again.
- ★★★★★ Andrea R
Great itinerary
Danube Bike Path 5-nights (Active)
From the welcome on Night 1 to the hotels along the way, the trip was well-planned; the guide who did our first night introduction was very thorough and helpful. Luggage pickup/dropoff was timely, which was a relief since we had to bike in the rain 2 days. Beautiful and interesting scenery along the way. Definitely recommend.
- ★★★★★ Kim S.
Sporty trip down the Danube!
Danube Bike Path 5-nights (Active)
Such a great way to experience this historic river and scenic countryside! An extra day before beginning my journey allowed time to relax and explore Passau. Hannas arrived at the hotel on time and provided information regarding the bike and route, very helpful. The route map provided was my main source for navigation and points of interest. I had some difficulty using the nav app but the R1 route is extremely well marked. A few extra days afterwards in Vienna topped off the trip. I’ll plan to return next year for another section along the Donau (Danube). The tour company made it very easy with prearranged hotels, luggage transport and route planning, will definitely use them again.
- ★★★★★ Klaud
Danubio
Danube Bike Path 7 Nights (Classic)
Tudo muito bom. Hotéis bons. A reunião de apresentação foi mal planejada. As 20h a portaria do hotel já estava fechada e o representante da bicicleta ficou do lado de fora.
- ★★★★★ Mindy Gumminger
Great experience
Danube Experience Bike and Boat Passau-Vienna-Budapest-Belgrade-Iron Gates-Passau
Boat accommodations, staff and meals were excellent. Excursions were excellent. Tour director was excellent. Internet and cell services were spotty. Navigation app did not work consistently. Some days there was not enough time to stop and see things along the bike route.
- What was the date of your tour?
- September 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- Several
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- Somewhat harder
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- First-time bike tourists, Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Serbia, Slovakia
- ★★★★★ Allison
Lovely trip
Danube Experience Bike and Boat Passau-Vienna-Budapest-Belgrade-Iron Gates-Passau
There was an unforeseen closure of the Danube due to bridge construction. This caused us to spend extra time on the boat. We had 2 full days on the boat with almost nothing to do. I think there could have been a bit of planning to provide activities in the event that plans change. They did give a class on how to change a bike tire which was good but that only took an hour. Dance or knitting classes, group games, contests, something to occupy a very active biking group would have been great.
The packing instruction seem to have been written for a shorter trip. There was plenty of room under the beds for luggage. There is no place in the rooms to set up a clothes line to dry clothing. - ★★★★★ Shelley
Bustling cities and quiet small towns
Danube Discovery: Bike and Boat through Enchanting Capitals
This trip is a perfect balance to visit thriving, iconic cities and then take in small towns on a peaceful ride along the Danube. Overall, the experience was excellent. The boat crew/staff were friendly, enthusiastic and efficient. The 3-course dinners were top notch and my cabin, which wasn't a bad size, was always spotless (lots of hot water - a bonus). All the bikes were ready to go when we needed them and loaded back on at the end of the day. The bike routes were well laid out and very easy without an ebike - very flat. We got stuck in a river lock on this trip and had to spend a full day on the boat - not the operator's fault, but there wasn't much to do on the boat except relax. The Prinzessin Katharina is more basic that some of the other boats we saw, but the value is certain there. I would recommend this trip.
- ★★★★★ Keith M.
A Beautiful Ride Through Austria
Salzburg to Vienna, Lakes Option
This was a very well organized and well thought out way to experience the beautiful countryside between Salzburg and Vienna. When we entered the hotel in Salzburg to pick up our rented bicycles for our first day of riding we were greeted by a representative from the bicycle rental company. With our bicycles he provided us with a tire patch kit, basic tool kit, and hand pump but no tire levers. At my request he provided me with a spare inner tube which came in handy on the last day of our tour. The bicycles provided were well maintained and well suited for this tour. My wife used an e-bike whereas I used a 24 speed hybrid bicycle with a triple crankset giving me a wide range of gearing just in case it got hilly. The bicycles also came with a set of panniers and a small handlebar bag on one to carry the tour guidebooks. The guidebooks were customized for our specific tour providing good information on the sights to see along the way as well as maps to the specific hotels we were to stay at. Accommodations were good, mostly family owned and run with the exception of the hotels in Salzburg, Linz, and Vienna which were part of different hotel chains, e.g. Marriott. The hotels we stayed at provided good European breakfasts and excellent Austrian coffee. Our luggage was always available at the hotel when we arrived. I am 70 years old and have toured by bicycle extensively throughout the United Staes since my teenage years but I found this tour far more enjoyable since the route we took was mostly on paved or crushed stone bicycle paths without auto traffic to deal with (in the United States I have bicycled through many beautiful national and state parks but have always had to deal with automobile traffic making it more difficult to enjoy the natural splendor). However, there were times where we did need to ride with auto traffic in and near the cities. We also rode on some backroads and roads through neighborhoods that have very little auto traffic. Good bicycle path signage is present along Austria’s cycle paths, however, the provided bicycle tour guide books did not take advantage of this. I believe the guide books should have referred to this bike path signage (e.g., R2 or R4 or R6 or R15) and mention which to follow from one city or town to the next. Another challenge was that the bicycle rental company did not provide handle bar mounts for our smart phones meaning anytime we needed to check a GPS track we had to stop and pull out our phones from our pockets or bags. This became especially frustrating on rainy days. Please note I did attempt to purchase smart phone handlebar mounts at a couple of bike shops along the way but neither of them carried what I was looking for; next time I will be sure to be prepared and bring my own. Although we found the GPS tracks very useful, on some occasions there were times that the GPS tracks did not perfectly match with the bicycle path signage which led to a little confusion but this was easily resolved after checking Google Maps. However, we found the eight km stretch GPS track from Grein to the Schatz.Kammer Burg Kreuzen hotel to be grossly inadequate. Although the paved parts of this path were manageable, we ended up on some very steep and poorly maintained dirt and gravel roads that would have been manageable with a decent mountain bike with wide tires but not the bicycles we were using. A shuttle from Grein to the hotel was offered and that may have been the better option for this part of the ride. Another point about Schatz.Kammer Burg Kreuzen hotel is the available buffet dinner. The cost is about 25 euros per person and is cash only. It would have been nice to know that they did not accept credit cards for the buffet dinner and it what it cost. Fortunately I had enough cash in my wallet to cover this expense. On the last day of riding we past a Canadian couple we had chatted with at dinner a couple of nights before. They had a flat tire and did not know how to repair it nor did they have the necessary tools and spare inner tube to do so. They had called the bicycle tour company to ask for assistance but since it was a Sunday they were told they would have to find their own way to the next town for assistance. Fortunately I did have a spare inner tube and had brought my own set of bicycle tools (including tire levers) from home; the basic tools provided by the bicycle tour company would have been inadequate to facilitate this simple repair. I was able to replace the inner tube and get them back on their way toward Vienna. I mention this not so much as a negative but to remind those interested in such a tour to come prepared to manage such inconveniences. Overall, the experience was most enjoyable and the scenery amazing. I strongly recommend this tour for anyone that enjoys bicycle touring through very scenic mountain valleys and historic towns and along scenic lakes and rivers. I am thankful that biketours.com has vetted this tour and made it easy and affordable to experience. The personnel at biketours.com were very helpful with the booking of this tour and patiently answered all of my questions. I will definitely book future European bicycle tours through biketours.com. SHOW MORE
- What was the date of your tour?
- October 2025
- How many tours have you completed?
- Dozens
- Difficulty (actual vs. expected)?
- As expected
- Who is this tour suitable for?
- Solo travelers, Families with teens
- Do you recommend this tour?
- Yes
- Countries included in this tour?
- Austria
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